In case goods of superior quality, and particularly in reproductions of antiques, there is a preference to utilize construction techniques which as closely as possible resemble those utilized by early cabinet makers in constructing the originals. It is also desirable to accomplish this goal without sacrificing the advantages of newer technology. Where these reproductions are of case goods such as dressers and cabinets having drawers therein, manufacturers are returning to the use of wooden, dovetail drawer guides for authenticity. The use of such drawer guides, however, has led to a need for a drawer stop means which does not detract from the structural authenticity of the piece. Conventional, or contemporarily known drawer guides or stops are largely made, in their entirety, from metal and/or plastic, and thereby generally are unacceptable in higher quality reproduction furniture. It was thus an objective of the present invention to develop a drawer stop means which would be acceptable for use in antique reproductions, would have minimal components, and would be applicable to simple, dovetail drawer guides.
The present invention accomplishes these objectives and is an improved stop means for use with dovetail drawer guides; which stop, although made from a polymeric material, does not unnecessarily detract from the authenticity of the reproduction. The present stop means is a primarily rigid but somewhat resilient, pivotally mounted device that is mounted on the side of the upper guide member of a dovetail drawer guide. The upper guide member of the drawer guide includes a mortise cut out of its lower surface, and is mounted on the outer bottom surface of a drawer with the open mortise facing downwardly. The lower guide member of the drawer guide is a mating dovetail shaped tenon attached to the upper surface of front and rear base plates which form the bottom of the drawer slideway in the case goods. When the drawer is inserted in the slideway the tenon is slidably retained in the mortise to guide the drawer in and out of the slideway.
The improved stop means is pivotally mounted on one outer side of the guide member, toward the rear of the drawer. The stop includes a substantially flat body portion having an arcuate side and a leg member integral to the body and positioned substantially opposite the arcuate edge. When the drawer is inserted into the slideway the leg portion pivots freely out of the path of the base plates to permit free movement of the drawer into the case goods. After passing over the forward base plate the stop mechanism pivots by gravity to a position where the leg member depends downwardly behind the forward base plate. When the drawer is pulled outwardly, under normal use, the substantially rigid leg engages the base plate and stops the drawer. The arcuate upper surface on the stop means abuts the undersurface of the drawer and prevents full rotation of the stop when the drawer is pulled forward, thus preventing the backward pivoting of the leg member.
The stop means is formed of a substantially rigid, but slightly resilient material such as urethane and is so shaped as to include an upper resilient finger. The slight resiliency provided by the urethane finger allows the finger to flex and the distance between the leg member and the finger to be compressed. Thus the normal locking pressure is overridden by application of force when it is desirable to fully remove the drawer from the slideway. However, under normal use the leg will engage and lock against the base plate and inhibit removal of the drawer.